Like the OP, I have coveted the BC20 pretty much from its inception, certainly through reading Julian Swindell's blog updates as No1 was in the build stage. Never imagined that I'd have a chance to buy one, but that chance came along last year and I took the plunge with BC20 No8. I still don't know if it is the right thing - only time will tell.
I owned my Drascombe Coaster for 14 years and over 6000 nautical miles, all documented on my old blog
www.daisyii.blogspot.com. The boat had countless benefits and very few drawbacks, but somehow the BC20 has been an itch I just had to scratch.
So far, things have been a bit... no, more than a bit frustrating - almost like some higher being asking, 'Are you sure? No, are you really sure?' The main issues have been:
Centreplate not dropping fully - solved eventually at the end of last summer, by a boat yard hoisting boat off trailer, forcing plate down and shaving a few mm of coppercoat off it. Boatyard inspection confirmed there had been no swelling through water ingress and that plate and box are perfectly watertight. How long had this been an issue for the previous owner, one wonders?
Centreplate pivot pin had been replaced by previous owner with one of the wrong size - no idea why - it was bent and allowed vertical play in the centreplate. Solved with replacement bolt of correct size.
Not recovering straight onto trailer - ongoing (and, yes, all relevant posts and articles noted on this increasingly excellent site). Difficult to solve when we're not able to launch!
Forward inspection hatches for water ballast leaking - on removal, found issue with rubber seals on lids, one missing, one broken. Replaced and now watertight, but understand, from Julian S's blog, that these might be an ongoing issue.
Water sloshing up through centreboard casing. New sealant deployed. Fixed.
Various scrapes, dings and scratches on hull topsides - inherited from previous owner. Slowly working my way round these and learning how best to achieve a finish which maintains the excellent original finish. I shall have to repaint eventually and, following advice, have decided that professional paint finishes will be prohibitively expensive and hard to maintain, so am going down the single pot route which better suits my limited skills.
Cabin cushions sticking to base paintwork. Removal, a huge amount of scrubbing; repainting cabin floor with primer before deciding how to proceed. Seems to be ok since, but still a little sticky in places.
Carbon fibre splintering on mast. Considering painting, but no progress on this currently.
Strongly considering having trailer modified to a braked version. What's the point of a cabined boat if you can't load it up with kit and kerboodle? 100kg is soon breached especially since outboard, main anchor & chain, kedge, ropes are all a part of the 100kg. Plus, I want to kit out the cabin with some permanent fixtures and fittings - all adding to the weight. To me, the trailer should have been braked from the outset, an unbraked one is a bit of a false economy.
From the limited sailing so far, I had issues on Hickling Broad where the rudder (which seems, oddly, to be angled forwards) happily hooked the various weed and algae and made serious progress very difficult - I had to angle the rudder aft and put down far less plate, and this seemed to increase weather helm substantially. However, a much better experience on Rutland Water a few weeks later. It's sea sailing, I particularly enjoy, however.
And now there's this current situation we all find ourselves...
Don't get me wrong, she is a seriously pretty boat and seems to sail very well although I've managed so few trips up to now. Hopefully, later this summer we'll be allowed out to play and I can put Daisy III through some serious sea miles.
